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Here’s a summer side dish that works well with any protein! There’s no reason to reach for the potato or macaroni salad when something this fresh, tasty and colorful is available as an alternative, especially at just over 50 calories for a 1/2 cup serving!

Ingredients (Make 9 servings)

• 2 ears of sweet corn
• 2 medium zucchini
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 cup of black beans
• 1 tbsp of lemon juice (or the juice of 1/2 of a lemon)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 tsp clover honey
• 1 tsp fresh or dried basil
• salt and pepper to taste

Get the Corn and the Clock Started

It takes 30 minutes to roast the corn, and in that time you should be able to do everything else required to prepare this dish. Of course, the corn will also keep if you choose instead to roast it in advance and prepare the rest of the dish at a later date. But this recipe will assume that you’re aiming for maximum efficiency.

Preheat an oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and prepare with cooking spray. After shucking your corn, season with salt and pepper and then bake for 25-30 minutes, turning occasionally.

Once you feel the corn has the desired color you want, pull it from the oven.

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Meanwhile… Chop & Saute

Once the corn is in the oven, turn your attention to the pepper and zucchini.

Slice the pepper and chop into approximately 1/2 inch squares.

Chop the zucchini small as well, aiming for a similar size to the pepper, although err on the larger size if you need to.

Since these vegetables cook at different times, and you have the time anyway while the corn is roasting, it’s best to cook them separately. Prepare a frying pan with cooking spray (feel free to use oil or butter if you’d like, but it adds unnecessary fat and calories). Saute the pepper for 2-3 minutes, until just a bit tender. Make sure to season with salt and pepper while in the pan.

Remove the pepper from the heat when done, and saute the zucchini, also making sure to season that as well. Cooking time on the zucchini will be dependent upon the size of your knife cuts. Most likely, though, it will again be 2-4 minutes.

You want the zucchini JUST past raw into the early stages of “cooked.” Some of this is personal preference, of course. But the one thing you do not want to do is overcook it. If you do, it will become mush and disintegrate when you mix the dish. So if you’re unsure, pull it from the heat 30 seconds before you think you should rather than 30 seconds after.

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Black Beans Add Protein to the Mix

Aside from tasting great and adding a nice color contrast, adding black beans to the mix adds a nice hit of protein to a vegetable side dish — a nice bonus.

Not much to do with the black beans, other than making sure you thoroughly drain and rinse your beans in cool water before using. You don’t want to add that canned black bean “juice” into your dish.

Once you’ve got 1/2 cup of beans prepped and ready, you can move on to the final piece of prep.

No Fear of Being Under-dressed

When you look at the yield of the salad, and the small amounts called for to make the dressing, it’s easy to the be tempted to double or even triple them… but trust me, you don’t need to.

If you properly seasoned the vegetables at each step along the way, this small amount of flavorful dressing will pack all the punch necessary without making the salad lose that fresh feel.

To make the dressing, simply combine the juice of 1/2 of a lemon or 1 tbsp of bottled lemon juice with 1 tsp of olive oil and 1 tsp of honey. If you’d like to make this recipe vegan friendly, feel free to substitute agave for the honey. Works just as well. Then add 1 tsp of finely chopped fresh basil, or dried basil if that’s all you’ve got on hand. After that, mix well and set aside.

Bring it All Together

Once the corn is done roasting, remove the kernels from the cob using a sharp knife. Add them to the bowl with the pepper, the zucchini and the black beans. Then add the dressing and toss until well coated.

Taste, and if necessary, add additional salt and pepper to taste.

Serve chilled or at room temperate. Store refrigerated for 2-3 days.

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